From sleep to wake, the subconscious, uncontrollable phenomenon of dreams is crazy. As the insane, subsection of each of our minds play out the most bizarre stories to our own private showing – the shift from sleep to wake moves our daily awareness from unreal to reality. For many, the dream is the haven and the reality is the nightmare. There are millions of writings on dreams because, whether we recall them or not, every human dreams. Whether reliving the past or projecting the future – or mostly, having absolutely nothing to do with either – one thing is also true and common to all: dreams are not real. Dreaming is real, dreams are not. They are an illusion. I can’t count how many times I’ve woken up and said, “thank God that was only a dream.”
So, my wondering is not of the dreams themselves (which thousands of books have explored)– as they are more varied than human fingerprints – my wondering is what is real v. unreal; senses v. stimulation; truth v. deception. From movies to mindbenders, we all are fascinated by the constant crossing of real and unreal/seen and unseen. We simply believe: what I see is the only real and unseen is not real. As the saying goes, "seeing is believing." Yet for the reality of faith, believing is the seeing.
When I rise from dreaming each and every day, I rise to the crossing web of seen and unseen: the floor is seen, but the oxygen is not – both are my reality. Then onward to thousands of other crossings between seen and unseen that make up the reality of my life. At the exact same moment always is the underlying, life sustaining truth: what I see is temporary and what I do not see is eternal. That almost sounds like transporting into the Matrix. But it’s actually reality: all seen (or felt or any other five sense experienced) is never forever. As much as we want this to be of the awesome experiences, and of course, not of the awful moments. Good and bad, mountain and valleys, satisfied and starving, beautiful and horrible – all temporary. I tell my life that all I know is only what I can see (or sense).
Except for the more real, more
comforting, more sustaining truth: what I can’t see is eternal...and experienced which elevates (not negates) everything. More than "forever" which is held by time – the unseen is eternally fused to me because the me I can't see of heart and spirit is made for eternity. Some unseen is beautiful; some
unseen is atrocious. But that’s not my control or concern, just like dreams I
can’t control. My concern is where I focus – by temporary grasping or eternal
holding.
Focusing on the unseen doesn’t say the seen/sensed isn’t real. The
pain is real, the healing is real. The betrayal is real, the love is real. The rejection
is real, the relationship is real. The fear is real, the joy is real. The
losses are real, the abundance is real. The addiction is real, the recovery is
real. But
crossing over each of those realities is a common, greater Reality that is
bonded to the unseen heart as true as the experiences will fall off like a coat in summer. The unseen remains with me and calls my focus to be true to me, whatever
circumstances crowd for my control. Focus on the only true and eternal: faith
to brings sight to the blind. Illuminates the steps. Just ask to see the
unseen; to step into the dark and trust the Light of the one who gives breath
and His sight. Dream on; but live more. Focus in faith and see the world of our own hearts and lives as never before. See the unseen to truly, abundantly live as we were made to live - breathing air of grace and love that can't be seen, only known. Ask and See.
